What To Do If Your Subaru Forester Trunk Won’t Open
If your Subaru Forester trunk won’t open, you might just need to hold down the button for a little bit longer. Click here to learn more.
Written by Amber Reed
Reviewed by Pat Roache
If the trunk of your Subaru Forester won’t open and you hear three beeps when you press the lift button, keep holding it for about 10 seconds and the latch should release.
Power and hands-free liftgates are a wonderful feature—until they stop working! There are a few different potential reasons why the trunk of your Forester is ignoring you, and
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What to do if your Subaru Forester trunk won’t open
If you have a Subaru Forester with a power liftgate, you’re probably a big fan of its easy functionality and convenience. But you might find yourself at a bit of a loss for what to do if it stops working. Luckily, there are a few things that you can troubleshoot at home before you make an appointment at the dealership.
Hold down the tailgate button
The power liftgate is handy, but the downside of more technology often means that more things can break!
Several owners of Foresters reported that they pressed the button on the tailgate, nothing happened and they heard three beeps instead. If this is the scenario you’re in, the mechanism that automatically raises and lowers the gate is likely a little confused and just needs a gentle reset.
Here’s what you do: hold down the button on the liftgate for about 7 to 10 seconds. You should hear the latch release. After that, gently pull upwards on the tailgate—but don’t use too much force. Once the tailgate is open, you should be able to hit the ‘close door’ button on it and have it return to closing (and opening) like normal.
Other possible causes
If that’s not the issue, then there are a few other potential causes.
- Broken key fob: If you can open the trunk using the driver’s side button or the button on the hatch, then the problem could be with your key fob. It might need a new battery, or the entire unit could be broken.
- Faulty release button: If the trunk will open all other ways except via pushing the button on the dashboard or hatch, then the button itself could be the bad egg.
- Electrical malfunction: Bad wiring, a burnt-out fuse, or a malfunctioning actuator can all be the cause of a trunk that won’t budge.
- Broken hardware: There could be a problem with the physical latch or hinges themselves that’s preventing your trunk from opening.
If you’ve tried figuring things out at home but still get no results, then it’s time to call your Subaru dealership and bring your Forester in for some diagnostics and repairs.
How to manually open a Subaru Forester trunk
So making an appointment with the dealership is all well and good, but what if you want that thing open now? A plus with the Forester is that you can access the rear cargo area pretty easily from inside the car. So if you’ve got groceries melting back there, you can reach over the back seat and spirit them out the side doors.
You may even be able to open the liftgate from the inside of certain models of the Forester. Look at the interior area of the tailgate that’s about where the handle is on the outside. If you see a small square or rectangular panel, gently pry it open with your key or a flathead screwdriver.
Once you’ve removed the panel, there should be a small latch in there. Press upwards on it, and the trunk should release. Ta-da!
Cost of trunk repair for Subaru Forester
If you do need to take your Forester in for repairs, the cost will vary depending on what’s wrong and if it’s covered under warranty. In general, repair costs for a Subaru tend to be a little higher than average, but not too bad.
If it’s something like the
trunk latch cable
, owners report having to pay around $100 to $200 for repair or replacement. The latch mechanism itself is likely to run around $70 or $80, and a replacement actuator mechanism
will be around $150. Keep in mind that you’ll also need to pay for labor costs as well. These will vary by location, but most states have an average of around $130 to $150 per hour.
How to save on Subaru insurance
Owning a car can get expensive—what with maintenance, unexpected repair costs, and the price of gasoline. But one area that you can always save money in is your
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